The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1887-05-09
STRANGER THAN FICTION.
The Wild Girl Of the Salmon River
Mountains-Her Boudoir.

Idaho Letter in 81. Louis Globe Democrat.
A hunter, while wandering in the depths
of the Salmon River Mountains, far from
the habitations of man, saw before him
beautiful lake in the grandest, widest
natural settings--giant cedars with pendant
festoons of moss and towering columns OF
granite A fair girl, unadorned, unclothed,
except by a feecy wealth of golden hair,
stood waist deep in the water. She looked
with nervous stare that betrayed wild
nature. She sprang from the water and
disappeared in black, yawning cavern. The
man Of the chase was not romantic There
might be such thing as mermaid, but
he did not believe in ghosts, He FASTENED
! to the camp. 1t was dark when he found
his comrades by the log fire. They were
old hunters and knew not fear The story
| of lone girl in that gloomy solitude was
| related The Pickering flames cast shadows
more weird: when the owl hooted and the
echoes died away the stiffness seemed OPP
pressive The three Nimrods visited the
| lake next morning. The same fair creature
| was standing at the foot of the cliff beyond
| the water She was clothed in the skins of
wild animals; her hair was blown by the
| light breeze in fluffy ringlets about her
| shoulders She was startled-looked for a
moment and fed. The explorers did not
trespass upon the strange lady's sacred pre-
! cinctS
When they returned to the valley their
| story was widely circulated, and a newspa-
per correspondent, accompanied by some
| daring cowboys, decided to trace the rumor
| to the fountan-head. They found a beau
| tiful, untrodden, grassy. valley of an area of
| 100 acres, around two sides of what is known
on the surveyors map as Moose Lake Few
| white men have ever passed through the
Ia,Nth lpn1r
down into tee sheltered dell. No signs of
life were apparent when the unrippled
water reflected back the gray, moss-covered
wall of rocks that stood so nearly perpendic
| ular on the border. The entrance to
the cave could be seen, but only the black
sides and arches marked the home of the
object of the search The Investigators
passed up the uneven, worn stone steps to
the door of the subterranean domicile of the
| appaition or angel. They paused, they
peered, but all was hidden in the heavy
shadows. They hallooed; an echo answered
as from a well. A stir in the passage and
a frightful visage was seen, with tangled
strings of gray hair dangling, with blinking,
| watery red eyes glaring, as a feeble, trem-
| bling Indian tottered forward His atti-
| tude was that of defiance as he placed
| himself in the door Of his dungeon, but
| the withered form and palsied arm were a
| miserable caricature of the warrior of fifty
| years ago. He was pushed aside. The
| reckless men rushed forward, guided by a
| torch, through a winding tunnel into great
| cave, with many angular receSses and I'M
| even roof and walls. Corners and columns
| divided the vast interior into apartments.
! One of these divisions was the wild girls
| boudoir. Seated on a robe, in commissions
| of fright, was a well-developed maiden.
| The torch dazzled her sight She turned
her face from the intruders and bowed
her head and sobbed pitifully. They
| did not approach her but
turned away and passed from her
presence filed with sorrow and moved with
| sympathy, which her intense emotion
| seemed to communicate to even these
| thoughtleSs young men of the plains. The
| withered old guardian was found to be
| dumb. When addressed in the Nez Perez
Indian language he could understand but
| replied only with signs These facts were
published when the party returned to civil
lization, and Mr.. Holbrook, in his far-off
| Colorado home, read them several weeks
after the discovery. He Travelled with all
possible speed to the Salmon River Valley,
his foIIneR home, and soon organized party
to assist in the rescue including two of the
company that had made the exploration on
| the previous occasion.
The faithful Indian was guarding his
| door. He offered no resista11ceGat the en-
| trance, but trotted on before as the inva-
derS passed the narrow door and led the
way to where the girl sat. She was wrap
ped in furs to keep warm. The anxious
father rushed forward to clasp his daughter
to his bosom, but that old relic of meble
race placed his warped frame between
father aud child. Like man of
straw the Indian was pushed away
No word of meaning but a wall of
anguish burst from his lips The girl
sprang to her feet. The father was hurled
back as if he had tried to embrace a tigress.
The Indian was addressed in his native
tongue by one of the cowboys, and gave
signs, after some delay, that he understood
the situation. He communicated to the
frightened child by signs and grunts, and
she settled down on the robe and stared with
wild eyes at those around her
After a long, one sided conversation
the old cave-dweller expressed his con
l,sent that his ward should go with
her father She could speak no language,
but was quoted by .pantomime on the
part of her protector To make the story
short, Mr.. Holbrook, by great deal of per
suasion and some force. succeeded in get
ting his daughter to the house of a friend.
The old Indian accompanied the party, and
is aiding in the work of tanning the wild
girl and teaching her to talk before start
ing across the continent and separating her
from the only human who can communicate
with her.
In 1877 Mr.. Holbrook was engaged in the
stock business ON Salmon river. The first
raid of Joseph's warriors was in that coun-
try, and Mrs. Holbrook and child were
taken prisoners Mrs Holbrook was re-
leased after fearful torture, but never re-
covered from the injuries and nervous
shock. The girl was supposed to have been
murdered. 1t now transpires that she was
rescued by the old dumb Indian and carried
to his lonely home, where she lived nine
years without hearing human
voice or seeing a human be,
ing, except the deformed and
feeble old man. This old Indian was once
a member of the Nez Perez tribe, but was
decided TO be "a sorcerer or a witch, and was
condemned to have his tongue cut out and
be banished. For years, too far back TO be
reckoned, he has lived in that gloomy cave.
He has made visits TO the settlement, and
traded furs to the whites for powder and
lead. Fish, game, roots and berries have
been the only food and the skins of wild
animals the only clothing in all those years
of loneliness.